Chuck vs The Guppy
by Misfit Writer
Summary: Set eighteen years after the finale. Chuck has won back his wife and developed the counter-cyber terrorism company they'd talked about. They also have a daughter named Riley, who has inherited Chuck's computer skills. An old enemy returns and drags Team Bartowski back into the world of espionage and danger for the sake of revenge and the Intersect.
1. Chapter 1

Ooookay, so I know I have a bunch of stories that I should probably be updating before starting this one, but I promise I am going to try at some point to finish those. This one just wouldn't leave me alone.

Disclaimer: Clearly Chuck isn't mine, otherwise it wouldn't have ended ;)

This story is set eighteen years after the finale. Sarah's memories didn't return all at once with the kiss, but many returned over time as they found each other again.

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><p>Riley Bartowski glanced up from her computer when a warm, familiar hand came to rest on her shoulder. She smiled up at her father and pulled the headphones away from her ears, dropping them to hang around her neck. "Hey, Dad. I was just looking into that communiqué from yesterday. I think I'm getting close to decoding it."<p>

Her father's nose crinkled as he smiled proudly at her. "That's my little hacking mini-me," he praised, lifting his hand to the back of her head and tugging her gently forward to place a kiss on the top of her head. Riley gave him a matching smile as he stepped back. "How was school?"

The seventeen year old shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest. "Eh, same old same old. Boring compared to hacking secret messages from unknown sources. Teachers love me, guys don't know what the heck to do with me, girls hate me…" Riley rolled her eyes as she trailed off, and laughed at her father's raised eyebrow.

"I will be more than happy to tell any _guy_ that might be unsure what he can do."

Riley dropped her headphones onto the desk and pushed herself to her feet. She reached up and patted his chest. "Relax, dad, you don't need to whip out your super spy skills just yet, guys aren't too fond of a girl who can out…well, out _everything_ them while they're trying to maintain some modicum of a reputation among the high school masses."

Chuck grinned and shook his head. "What did I do to deserve such a great kid?" The spy reached up and ruffled his daughter's chocolate hair. "Where's your mom?"

"Checking messages in her office I think. Before you go and get all…mushy, can you take a look at this? See if any of what I got makes sense?"

With a chuckle, the former spy leaned down towards the computer and began reading the half-decoded communiqué. "Paris on Christmas Eve? Sounds like a nice vacation…but nothing ringing a bell yet. We'll come back after dinner and double team it, ok?" He kissed her hair again and headed off to find his wife. Riley smiled and sat back down at the computer, settling the headphones over her ears and focusing on the message once more.

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><p>"Hey babe, sorry, the meeting took a lot longer than I'd anticipated," Chuck murmured, wrapping his arms around his wife's waist from behind and trailing kisses along her neck.<p>

"It's fine, you didn't miss anything exciting. How was the meeting?" Sarah turned in his arms and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

"Mmm, excellent, they want us to test their new security system and network security. You and Casey will be working with Adam and Molly on the building security, and Riles and I will tackle network security. Starting next week."

"Sounds good. I've got a pot roast cooking at home, should be ready within the hour. I'm just about done here. How about a movie night tonight?"

Chuck grinned affectionately. "Sure, that sounds perfect. I promised Riley I'd help her try to crack that message after dinner, but we'll keep it short and sweet. I'll take her home and finish getting dinner ready by the time you are done here." He reached up to cup her face and stole her breath with a tender, passionate kiss, his tongue lazily tracing her lips until they parted and her own tongue grazed across his. "Don't be too long."

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><p>Sarah was surprised to see an empty dining room when she arrived at Casa Bartowski. The table was set, wine at Sarah and Chuck's places, and she could smell the roast that she knew was resting in the oven. Her husband and daughter, however, were nowhere to be found. With a smile, she turned and made her way upstairs to the place she knew she would find them.<p>

"Dad, I think I got it," Riley cheered, pumping her fist into the air triumphantly. Sarah watched silently from the door with a wry smile as Chuck turned from his own computer and high-fived their daughter. He threw an arm around her shoulders and turned with her to look at the decoded message.

Concern filled the former spy as she watched her husband's body go rigid. "Chuck?" she questioned lightly. Riley glanced between her mother and father in concern. "Dad?"

Chuck turned his gaze to his wife, his face pale. "Shaw was released from CIA custody." Sarah felt her entire body go cold. "He sent us the encoded communiqué just to gloat about it, there were no threats or anything."

Sarah closed her eyes and drew a deep, steadying breath through her nose, and opened her eyes to look at her daughter. "We need to tell Casey and Morgan…we need to talk to Jones and find out what the hell they were thinking releasing him. If the CIA had anything to do with it…"

"Um, can someone fill me in on what's going on?" Riley questioned, feeling lost and unsettled by the tension between her parents.

Chuck sighed. "When your mother and I first started dating, we had…_trouble_ with a man named Daniel Shaw. He was a special agent for the CIA who had a vendetta, initially against your mom and then against both of us."

"Why?"

Chuck looked to his wife, unsure of how much to divulge. "My final test to become a spy for the CIA was to kill a target. I did not know who my target was beyond her name and her face…I later found out that it was Shaw's wife. He wanted to get revenge on me for his wife's death, and on your dad for putting him in prison." She pulled up a picture of the rogue agent on Chuck's computer. "Your dad almost killed him to protect me, and then imprisoned him twice. He's been in jail for almost twenty years this time, and if he was released I'm sure he is not happy with us. We are going to spend some time in Castle until we can figure this out, okay?" She looked up at Chuck, who nodded his agreement. "We are not risking him taking his anger towards us out on you."

"What?" Riley questioned, stepping back from her parents. "Why would he come after me? He doesn't even know who I am."

Chuck moved to stand in front of Riley and placed both hands on her shoulders. "He has connections that we don't know about…he had the highest ranking members of the CIA in his pocket twenty years ago…we don't know how much he does or doesn't know about us or you." He gently pushed her out of the office and towards her bedroom. "I need you to pack enough for a week okay? Please."

Riley stared after her parents for a moment, and felt a twinge of fear settle into the pit of her stomach when they both hurried off to their own bedroom. She hurriedly threw clothes and belongings into a bag and rushed out to meet her father in the hallway. He ushered her and his wife out to their car, keeping a keen eye on their surroundings.

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><p>Once they made it to Castle, Chuck engaged the perimeter lockdown and used their secure line to call Casey, Morgan, and their employees Adam and Molly. Riley found herself pacing in one of the interrogation rooms, unable to watch her parents on autopilot as they gathered their friends and murmured to each other about plans. The youngest Bartowski had never felt afraid for herself or her parents; sure they had dealt with the occasional angry criminal, but she'd never seen her parents so flustered. It seriously freaked her out.<p>

Adam and Molly showed up at Castle at the same time. Molly went straight for her bosses, and Adam took the time to greet them before seeking Riley out. Chuck watched the young man search the rooms for her, and sent his wife a look. He'd known of the young man's growing feelings for his daughter, and for the first time he was more inclined to accept those feelings rather than try to discourage them.

Riley looked up from her pacing when she heard a soft knock at the doorway. Adam was leaning against the frame with his arms crossed over his chest and a sympathetic smile on his face. "Hey."

"Hey there, Guppy," he murmured, trying to lighten the mood. Riley shook her head and tried to suppress her own grin. "Guppy? No? Mini Piranha? Should I come up with something better?"

"Ya think? I'm pretty sure my hacking skills warrant my _own_ nickname, not a spinoff of my _father's_ handle." She shoved his shoulder with a full smile, appreciating his distraction for what it was. He stepped further into the room behind her when she turned to unpack her clothes.

"Yeah yeah, I guess," he teased. "Well it seems like we will have plenty of time to come up with something new. Your dad asked us to hang out until we got the all-clear just in case things get hairy. But he didn't really explain anything…what the _hell_ is going on?"

Riley dropped the shirts she'd been holding onto her makeshift bed and started to pace again. "I don't know, I…I decoded this weird message that didn't make any sense to me, but it did to my dad and it was apparently from some guy named Shaw who is supposed to be in prison but got out and has a grudge against my family and-"

"Whoa hey, hey, Riley look at me," Adam interrupted gripping her shoulders firmly. She looked up and met his eyes, but he could see that she was still freaking out. His hands gently moved from her shoulders to cradle her face, ensuring that he had her full attention. "We are going to come up with a plan to deal with this as a team, okay? We're going to do what we've always done. You know this is the safest place we could be right now, so nothing is going to happen to any of us. Okay, Riley?"

The youngest Bartowski slowly nodded, and fought to regain her composure. "I didn't peg you for the caring and sharing type, Marshall," she teased back lightly, draping her fingers across his wrists to let him know that she appreciated his grounding touch. Riley's heart skipped a beat when he leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly.

"Desperate times and all, Bartowski," he whispered.

"How touching, does Daddy Bartowski know his employee has his hands all over his baby girl?" Riley gasped and Adam tensed at the strange voice at the door. Both young adults turned towards the voice, and Riley immediately recognized the man from the picture her mother had shown her not two hours before. He had a gun aimed at Adam. "Hello, Riley."

"How the hell did you get in here?!" Riley demanded as Adam stepped in front of her protectively.

"I know very important people in very high places, my dear. I know more than you realize, including how to navigate your father's little security system to bypass the lockdown." Shaw grinned manically. "You parents don't know this yet, but they are locked out of this wing of _Castle_, so they won't know you're gone until far too late." He took a menacing step into the room, and Adam nudged Riley back in response.

"Stay the hell back!" Adam growled, reaching behind him to ensure he was blocking Shaw's way to Riley.

"What do you want with me?" Riley demanded, trying unsuccessfully to look around Adam's body. "What have I ever done to you?!"

Shaw laughed, and stepped forward again until Riley and Adam couldn't move back any farther. "Not a thing, my dear, but trust me, your parents have done enough." He turned his attention to the young man. "I won't hesitate to kill you if you don't move out of my way."

Adam's spine straightened and his jaw tightened at the threat. "Then go ahead and kill me, because I won't let you touch her," he growled. Riley grabbed his arm and squeezed hard.

"No, Adam…please, I can't be the reason something happens to you," Riley pleaded.

Shaw rolled his eyes when Adam opened his mouth to respond. "Either move or I will move you," he threatened. "I don't have time or desire to play games."

Adam sighed heavily, and allowed his shoulders to sag. Riley let out the breath she'd been holding and watched the victorious grin start to cross Shaw's face, until Adam caught him off-guard with a hard right cross. Shaw stumbled in shock, but regrouped quickly and swung his gun as hard as he could to hit Adam across the temple. The younger man cried out and crumpled to the ground. Riley yelped in fear when he raised the gun again.

"Please! I'll go with you don't kill him!" she cried, trying to step in front of Adam protectively. Shaw backhanded her hard enough to get her out of the way so that he could bring his gun down once more onto Adam's head a he struggled to push to his feet.

Leaving the now-unconscious man sprawled on the ground, Shaw grabbed a disoriented Riley by the hair and dragged her out of the room. As she regained her senses, she could hear the desperate voices of her parents calling for her and Adam. "Mom! Dad!" she cried, struggling to pull free of her captor. Shaw wrapped an arm around her throat and the other around her waist, giving her less room to move and him better grip to pull her into a different interrogation room. She realized he was taking her into a room with a vent in the ceiling and tried to scream out for help again.

Stars danced before her eyes for a moment and pain exploded in the back of her head. Right before everything went dark, Riley felt Shaw turn her around and stare at her wickedly as she lost her grip on consciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Chuck's not mine. Sigh.

Please let me know what you guys think of this, about pacing, characterization, direction, any of it! I was reminded that Casey would be about 65; I kinda picture Casey being like Chuck Norris who is in his 70's and still kicking butt ;) In this case, though, he has retired from the NSA and works a (typically) much calmer cyber security job for Carmichael Industries.

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><p>Chuck smiled wryly at his wife. "Adam went back to talk to Riley. Morgan and Casey are on their way. Breathe, relax. Once everyone else is here, we will get a game plan together and figure this all out." He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.<p>

Sarah sighed into Chuck's shoulder, and hugged him close. "I can't believe he's come back…I don't think I want to know how he even got out."

The spies both looked up abruptly when the muffled sound of Adam shouting. Chuck released his wife and took off for his daughter and employee. He could hear Sarah and Molly's steps following his own as he rounded the corner to the hallway of cells.

And stopped just short of a glass door. He cursed under his breath and slapped his palm against the panel on the wall next to him. Chuck turned his gaze in surprise when the panel wailed in denial. "What the hell?!" He hit the panel with his open palm again, and growled when it denied him access again. "Sarah!" The blonde touched the panel with no different effect. Chuck pounded the glass with his fist. "Adam! Riley!"

For a moment, they didn't hear anything. Chuck opened his mouth to call for his daughter again, but his breath caught in his throat and his entire body went rigid when Shaw stepped out of an interrogation room. One arm was wrapped around his daughter's waist, the other around her throat, and her eyes were clenched tightly. "Riley!"

"Dad!" she screamed. Shaw smirked evilly at his nemesis, and dragged the teenager into the room that Chuck knew held an access panel to the vents.

"Let her go, Shaw! She's innocent!" Chuck pleaded, knowing his words were falling on deaf ears. Shaw had likely forced Riley up into the vents and couldn't hear him anymore anyway. He then realized that there was someone missing from the equation, and felt another shock of fear race through him. "Adam!"

Sarah joined him in trying to get the panel to respond, typing in any code she could think of to override the lockdown Shaw had somehow put in place. "Damnit!" she hollered, raking her hands through her hair. Chuck wrapped his arms around her, struggling to reign in his terror and fury. "What are we going to do, Chuck? He has our baby girl!"

"We're going to do what we've done every time this son of a bitch has tried to tear our family apart…we will beat him," he swore, his voice trembling. "We _will._"

As if in response to his vow, the door opened with a soft _whir_. Chuck stared at the open space in shock for a moment, and then took off for the room Shaw had disappeared into. The vent was closed. He reached up to tug it open, and cursed under his breath again when it didn't budge. "Sarah, can you try to get this open? I need to check on Adam," he murmured, holding his wife's gaze long enough to see that she had transitioned into her agent mentality, pushing down her feelings long enough to get the job done. She nodded to him and ran to get tools while Chuck turned to Molly. "I want you to stay in here until I can check on Adam, do you understand me? Help Sarah until I call for you okay?"

As soon as the young woman nodded, Chuck ran to the room he'd seen Shaw and Riley leave. His steps faltered when he found Adam face-down on the floor with blood pooling under his head. The raven-haired man hesitated in the door, taking a steadying breath.

He then knelt next to his young employee, and breathed a sigh of relief when he felt the steady thump of Adam's pulse under his fingers. "Adam? Adam, buddy can you hear me?" he eased the young man onto his back. "C'mon, wake up, Adam."

"Riley," Adam whimpered, his eyes clenching against a blinding headache. He tried to reach up to touch the source of his pain, and was startled by a hand gently halting his movement. He blinked up at Chuck, suppressing a groan. "Where's Riley?"

Chuck closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath. "Shaw took her. We're going to get her back. We need to get you cleaned up first." He offered his hand to Adam to help him sit upright.

"I'm…I'm so sorry, sir…it's my fault that she was taken."

When Adam didn't move, Chuck placed his hand on his shoulder and eased him up to lean back against the wall. "First of all, since when do you call me sir? You have been working for me for three years. Second of all, this is _not_ your fault. Molly?" Chuck called, waiting until his other employee hurried into the room to speak. "Molly I need you to grab the first aid kit for me, okay?" When she gave him a teary nod and ran back out of the room, Chuck turned his attention back to Adam. "Shaw is a twisted son of a bitch with more connections than we knew about. I don't know how he got into Castle, but none of this is your fault, Adam. The fact that you've got a pretty nasty head injury tells me in no uncertain terms that you tried to protect my daughter."

Adam refused to look up until Molly came back in and handed her boss the kit.

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><p>"Get your damn hands off of me!" Riley growled as Shaw's men dragged her roughly into a warehouse. She tried to plant her feet, to throw off their balance, but they simply wrenched her shoulders forward and left her scrambling to follow. "Please, let me go," she begged to Shaw.<p>

The man in question stopped in the middle of the warehouse and turned to her with a smug smile. She stared at him, taking in how much he had aged from the picture her mother had shown. Grey lightened his once-jet black hair, and lines marred his face and made him look perpetually angry. "I will let you go if your parents give me what I want."

"What _do_ you want?!"

Shaw laughed. "I want the information that is in your father's head. I want the Intersect, and then I want to watch the light go out in his eyes."

Riley straightened her back and sent him the nastiest look she could muster. "You haven't been able to kill my father in any of the attempts you've made over the past twenty years. You've been rotting in prison; I must say the years haven't been good to you by the way. My father, on the other hand, has spent the last twenty years improving his skills. How the hell do you plan on getting the best of him now?"

Shaw's grin disappeared, and he moved into her personal space so she had to look up at him. "You have so much fire, so much like your mother." He gripped her chin, and turned her face to get a better look at her. Riley tried to pull free, but he tightened his hold until she winced. "Your father has been a slave to his _feelings_ his entire life. He will give me whatever I want to free his precious child."

"Bastard," Riley hissed. Shaw released her chin only to backhand her hard across the cheek.

"Put her in the cell. Get everything ready for our little message to Mr. Bartowski."

Once again Riley planted her feet, this time also trying to pull her arms free. She cried out in surprise when the men holding her kicked the backs of her knees and manhandled her across the rest of the building to a small room with no windows. She was shoved into the cell, and left to pick herself up while they slammed the door and locked it. The young Bartowski finally allowed herself to feel everything she'd been suppressing to appear strong, and tears welled instantly in her eyes.

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><p>Sarah came into the room as Chuck was finishing with Adam. The former agents looked to each other, and Sarah shook her head. "They were long gone before I was able to get in. Casey called me, and I bypassed the lockdown long enough for him, Morgan and Alex to come in. They'll be down in just a minute." She turned her attention to Adam. "Are you okay?" He nodded solemnly. "Adam, this was <em>not<em> your fault. I know that you did everything in your power to protect Riley…Shaw is a trained killer. You are not. We are thankful that he didn't go to that extreme, but I don't want to hear any indication that you hold yourself responsible for this do you hear me?"

The young man gave her a feeble half-smile. "Yes ma'am."

"What's with the sir's and ma'ams? Knock that off," Chuck insisted, attempting to keep the levity from vanishing as fast as Sarah was able to create it. He knew the moment they all stopped to think about the gravity of their situation, they would risk losing focus. "Let's go fill Casey and the others in." He held out his hand for Adam, and pulled him carefully to his feet. Instead of releasing his employee right away, he placed his free hand on Adam's shoulder and gave him a meaningful look. Meeting his gaze, Adam finally released his guilt and nodded.

"Let's go figure out a plan and get our girl back."


End file.
